Box-making machine.



No. 647,992. Patented Apr. 24, 1900.

A. H. scHANcK & L. n. HlcKMAN.

BOX MAKING MACHINE.

Applicatim ined my 17 1999.) (No Model.) 4 sheets-sheet Y I Ma f 9 THE Noam frans cu. PHoTo-L'rMo.. wAsmNnToN. u. c.

No. 647,992. Patented Apr. 24, |900.

A. HQ scHANcK & L. n. HIGKMAN. BOX MAKING MACHINE.

(Application led July 17, 1899.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 2` (No Model.)

TH: Numus PETERS wv. wovoumo., wASmuorN. u. c.

@W25 e e I 02652044 M. im .w f fi/MM i No. 647,992. Patented Apr. 24,v |900. A. H. SCHANCK & L. R. HICKMAN.

BOX MAKING MACHINE.

(Application led July 17. 1899.) (No Model.) V 4 Sheets- Sheet 3.

r HIM' "H lil. 7755 t E D Q y Nn.647,992. Patented Apr. 24, 1900. A. H. SCHANGK '&. LKR. HICKMAN.

Box- MAKING MAcHmE.

(Apphcatxon led July 17 1899 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 (nu Model.)

'Nrn/D STATES PATENT l. Errori.

ALBERT II. SCHANCK AND LEE R. IIICKMAN, OF RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA.

BOX-MAKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 647,992, date April' 24, ieoo. Application filed duly 17,1899. Serial No. 724,083. (No model.)

To all whom, t may oon/cern: l.

Be it known that we, ALBERT I-I. SoHANcK and LEE R. I-IICKMAN, of Riverside, in the county of Riverside and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Box Making Machines, of which the following is a specilication.

' This invention relates to improvements in box-making machines, and refers more particularly to a machine adapted for nailing together wooden boxes of the kind used for packing fruit and the like.

Among the objects of the invention are to provide a machine which will automatically assort and arrange in position the required number of nails to fasten any given side of the box and to thereafter drive all of the nails into place by a single movement of the operator, to provide simple manually-operated means whereby the operator can by a single movement clamp the parts of the box together preparatory to driving the nails therein and without adjustment of or special mechanism to compensate for change in .the size of the box as it receives its several sides successively, to providela simple reliable nail-feeding mechanism which will properly arrange and deliver the nails to their individual positions With'ease and certainty, to provide a machine so constructed and arranged that a single operator may rapidly perform all the operations of assembling and nailing together the parts of a package or box, including the driving of the nails, and in general to provide a machine ot' simple and economical construction, of durable character, and capable of rapid and certain operation.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims, and the same will be readily understood from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation of a machine embodying our invention, certain parts being shown in section and a partly-formed box being shown in position within the machine. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, certain parts being shown in slightly-changed position. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the upper part of the machine shown in Figs. l and 2, drawn on a somewhat larger scale. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail in plan view Withparts broken away, showing particularly the con; struction of the nail-separating devices of the nail-feed. Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Referring to said drawings, A A designate the main side frame members, a pair at each side, connected with and arranged to rise from a suitable base-frame A', the said side frames being arranged parallel with each other and at a distance apart slightly in excess of the length of the box or package for which the machine is designed. B designates a horizontally-arranged table or support, arranged to extend between the side frame members and provided at each end with downwardly-extending arms b, grooved to engage vertical Ways a. upon the interior of the front members of said side frames A,said table being designed to support the box during the clamping and nailing operations.

In the operation of the machine the table B is raised slightly, so as to force the parts of the box which are to be fastened together into bearing with overhanging presser-bars hereinafter to be described, and in order to thus lift the table a rock-shaft c is arranged to extend transversely beneath the table B, having bearing at its ends in suitable bearings formed in the side frames A and carrying at each end a rigidly-attached cam c, adapted to act upon cam-surfaces b', formed upon the under side of the table, so as to lift the latter when the rock-shaft is oscillated. In order to oscillate the rock-shaft, the latter is provided with a rigid arm c2, with the outer end of which is connected a rod 0r link c4, which extends downwardly to and is connected with a footlever or treadle c3, suitably mounted upon the base-frame of the machine.

' In order that the table may be held in its raised position, the side of the foot-lever c3 is provided with a dog c5, adapted to engage a ratchet-bar c, mounted upon the inside of the adjacent side frame A, the pivotal support of the foot-lever being made sufficiently loose in the joint to permit the lever to swing laterally into and out of engagement with said ratchet-bar and a coiled spring c7 being preferably* provided to lift the foot-lever nor mally to its uppermost position.

Describing now the nailing mechanism, D

most clearly in Figs. l and 2.

ddesignatesarectangularhorizontally-disposed skeleton frame mounted to reciprocate vertically within the frame D, guided conveniently by being provided at its front and rear with ve rtical grooves which engage ways e upon the frame members d.

(Z4 designates a plurality of hammer-rods seated in the frame d3 and arranged to depend therefrom and extend at their lower ends` through guide-apertures d5, formed` through the cross-bars d2, as indicated most clearly in the sectional portion of Fig. l, the number and location of the hammerrods being of course arranged to correspond with the num-` ber of nails and position of the latter by which the particular box is to be fastened. Immediately beneath cach row of hammers and in vertical alinement with the latter are arranged supporting-bars dfgsuitably connected with the main side frame members and provided at points vertically beneath each hammer-rod with nail-passages C17, with the upper end of each of which is arranged to communicate a guide tube or chute d8, which extends upwardly to and communicates with a nailhopper provided with nail-distributing devices to be hereinafter described. The lower end of each of said uailtubes which communicate with nail-apertures of the supportingbars has the form of an open-ended thimble, into the side of which the tube opens, the thimbles being arranged in vertical alinement with the several hammer-rods, so as to permit the passage of the latter therethrough, while serving to direct the nails downwardly to the nail-passages of the bar. Mounted uponzthe supporting-bars d, at opposite sides of the same and in vertical alinement with each of the nailing-apertures therein, is a pair of nail-gripping devices consisting, as shown herein, of jaws (Z9, provided in their meeting faces with semicircular grooves or channels d, arranged to come into vertical alinement with the center of the nail-passages of the supporting-bar when the jaws are closed together, the size of the nail-holding portion of said grooves being such as to permit the body of the nail to pass therethrough, but small enough to prevent the head from passing through the jaws until forced positively therebetween by the ham mer-rod. Said jaws are held yieldably in contact with each other in positionto receive the nails by means of platesprings CU2, which in the present construction constitute also the means of supporting the jaws from the cross-bars. In order that the nails may be readily driven through the gripping-jaws by the hammer-rods, the entrance end of the nail-holding portion of each of the semicircular channels is beveled or countersunk, as indicated clearly at (Z13 in the sectional part of Fig. 3.

In order to depress the ham 1ner-frame,with

its several hammer-rods, means are provided as follows: E designates a rod or bar mounted to reciprocate vertically in a suitable guide or bearing F upon a frame member Aarranged in vertical position at the centerof the rearside ofthe main frame and supported in this position by means of a cross-frame member A3, extending between the main side frames A. At its upper end the bar E is provided with two divergent arms e2, rigidly connected therewith and arranged to extend at right angles therefrom beneath the hammer-supporting frame d3, to which latter the arms are connected by meansof suitable bolts e. With the lower end of the rod E is connected a link or bar f, which extends downwardly to and is connected at its lower end with a second footlever or pedal f at a point intermediate of the length of the latter, one end of said foot- `lever being suitably pivoted` to a pivot-lug f2, mounted upon the base-frame, while the treadle end thereof projects out in front of the machine in position for the foot of the operator. In order to return the foot-lever and connected hammer-frame to its normal upperi most position, a gravity-weight f3 is provided,

mounted upon a lever f5, pivoted between its ends upon astandard f4, rising from the base-frame, that end of the lever remote from the weight being pivotally connected with ther link f, as indicated most clearly in Fig. 2.

To next describe the nail-distributing mechanism, by means of which a single nail'is fed into the upper end of each one of the nailchutes upon each reciprocation of the hammer-rods, II designates as a whole a hopper secured upon the upper frame D, with its bottom 7L arranged in a forwardly and downwardly inclined position, as indicated most clearly iu Fig. 2. Conveniently said hopper is secured in this position by means of uprights h2 h3, secured to said frame D and the side frame members 7L4 of the hopper,the front lower edge of the hopper being arranged in line with the inlet ends of the nail-chutes d8. The bottom of the hopper Il is providedwith a series of longitudinally-exteuding slots-h' equal in number to the number of nail-chutes and each arranged to deliver into one of the latter, which slots are of suitable width to permit the-bodies of the nails to enter therein, but too narrow to allow the nail-heads to pass therethrough, so that nails fed into the upper end of the hopper and sliding downwardly over the bottom of the same will drop into thc slots and be suspended by their heads therein, as indicated atJ in Figs. 4 and 5. In order to facilitate the distribution of the nails and their entrance into the slots as described, a transversely-extending series of semicylin- IOO IIO

drie projections or bosses vi are provided in the l upper part of the hopper-bottom, said bosses being of such width that each substantially occupies the full width between a pair of slots 7L', so that nails falling thereon will roll downwardly on one side or the other into one of the slots. In order to still further facilitate the entrance of the nails into the slots, tapered V- shaped projections Z are provided at points slightly below the bosses Z, and in order to permit those nails which do not drop into the slots to be discharged through the bottom of the hopper, so as not to interfere with the feeding of the distributed nails, a series of openings t2, one between each pair of slots, is provided immediately beneath the V-shaped projections last described. At either side of these openings upstanding fingers 'Z3 are provided, which serve to arrest the nails and direct them through the openings. From the openings through the bottom of the hopper the nails drop into a guide-chute Zt, suspended beneath the hopper-bottom, and are thereby conducted to any suitable receptacle to be from time to time again returned to the hopper.

The nails distributed into the slots h and depending by their heads therein slide downwardly toward the lower end, at which point they are arrested by a nail-separating mechanism hereinafter to be described. In order to prevent the nails from getting out of line 'with each other and thereby preventing the uniform action of the nail-separating mechanism, guide-slats h5 are provided to extend parallel with and adjacent to each side of each of the slots h and at a suitable distance below the hopper-bottoms, as indicated clearly in Fig. 5, said slats being arranged to extend from a point near the hopper-openings downwardly to the point where the separating devices receive the nails. In order to unite and support the strips constituting the bottom of the hopper7 the latter is provided with a transversely-extending supporting-bar h6, secured to each of said strips by means of screws k7, said bar being supported a sufficient distance above the slots to avoid interfering with the passage of the nails by means of suitable space-blocks h3.

To now describe the nail-separating mechanism, L designates a transversely-arranged bar mounted to reciprocate endwise in suitable guides Z, depending from the side frames members h4 of the hopper. in position to support said bar directly beneath the discharge edge of the hopper-bottom. Seated in said reciprocatory bar is a series of standards Z, one for each of the slots of the hopper, which standards extend upwardly to a point adjacent to the bottom of the hopper and are there each provided with a separating head'or jaw Z2, rigidly mounted thereon. Said separatingheads consist of approximately right-angled Y triangular-shaped plates, each arranged with its longer right-angled side extending transversely underneath the slot, said latter side being uppermost, so as to serve as a stop against which the lowermost one of the nails is norm ally arrested,as indicated most clearly in Fig. 4. Each of the separating-plates is of such length as to extend from its point of connection with its standard, which is located midway between the slots, across and some distance beyond the slot which it controls and far. enough to overlap with its pointed end the heel portion of the next separate plate, said point being, however, arranged to extend at a distance from the heel of the adjacent feed-plate slightly greater than the diameter of the nail-body, so as to form a slot Z3, through which the nail may pass. In the nail-feeding operation the reciprocatory bar, with the separating-heads carried thereby, is normally retractedto its rearmost position, in which position the points of said heads are carried' backwardly a distance sufcient to permit the first or lowermost nail to drop down into contact with the heel of the next adjacent separate head, such action obviously occuring simultaneously with each of the heads of the series. Upon the downward movement of the hammer-rods the reciprocatory rod and separating-heads are carried forwardly,where upon the point Z4 of the feed-head enters between the iirst two nails, the lowermost passing through the slot Za'and being obviously forced downwardly through and out of the lower end of the slot h' by the oblique lower edge Z5 of the separate plate, while the succeeding nail is held from forward movement by the upper edge of the plate. In order to facilitate the entrance of the point Z4 between the nails and the feeding of the separated nail forwardly, the point of said plate is curved very slightly, as indicated at Z6.

In order to reciprocate the bar in the manner described, means are provided as follows: L designates va bent lever pivoted at its angle, as at Z7, to a rear transversely-extending member of the frame D, (see Fig. 3,) one arm of said lever extending upwardly and being provided in its end with a suitable slot or aperture Z8, engaging a stud or pin Z10 upon the under side of the reciprocatory bar,'while the opposite arm extends obliquely downward to and is operatively connected with a slot Z9, conveniently formed by a suitably.- shaped` confining-strap Z11,secured upon the upper side of one of the arms e2 of the hammer-rod frame, said confining-strap being so located upon the arm e2 as to insure the proper movement of the reciprocatory bar when the hammer-frame is depressed and returned.

In order to facilitate the distribution of the nails evenly over the bottom of the hopper H,

a second hopper G is mounted above the latter, having its bottom arranged in inclined position and so as to feed into the upper end IOO IIO

of the hopper I-I, said hopper being convenv iently supported at one end by means of slotted standards g', rising from the hopper H,andat its opposite end bysuitable supporting-studs g in the sides of the hopper H, with which itis engaged. Adjusting-screws g2, en-

gaging the slots g3 of the standards g', serve to provide means for adjusting the angle of inclination of the bottom of the hopper to insure the proper flow of the nails therefrom.

In the operation of nailing a box the end and intermediate partitions are arranged in position parallel with each other and at suitable distance apart in the box-recess and side slats or pieces iirst applied to the uppermost edges of said end and partition members. In order to hold said end and partition members in position until the first side is applied, U-shaped spring-clips M are mounted upon the back frame-pieces A2 A4 and arranged with their open ends projecting forwardly therefrom in position to receive the several vertical box members, a pair of said clips being provided for each member, as indicated most clearly in Figs. 1 and 2. Preferably,also, a guide-stop N is provided mounted upon one of the side frame members A in position for engagement with the ends of the side slats of the box when the latter are placed in position for nailing, so as to facilitate their rapid adjustment into place.

As hereinbefore described, the first step in the operation of nailing the box after having placed the end and partition members in po sitionand adjusting the members of one side thereon is to lift the box bodily into engagement with overhanging parts, so as to clamp the box members together preparatory to nailing the same, it being noted that the lower ends of the frame-pieces A2 A1 terminate at such a distance above the table as to permit the latterl to rise sufficiently to carry the box into engagement with the overhanging parts without striking said ends. To this end horizontally-arranged presser-bars d are mounted upon thelowerends of the depending arms cl in position to engage the upper side of the box at points immediately above the end and partition members thereof.

In order to provide means for holding a supply of side strips in most convenient position for access by the operator, the upper part of the front portion of the frame D is so constructed as to form a horizontal support upon which side pieces 0 may be piled, and, likewise, in order to provide supports for a supply of end and intermediate box members bracket-shelves P are provided upon each side of the main frame.

In order that the machine as a whole may be conveniently Wheeled about and yet may be allowed to rest directly upon its base when in operation, caster-supports are provided. A single caster q is mounted upon a rigid arm q', located midway of the rear edge of the base-frame and projecting slightly upward and outwardly therefrom, so as to hold the caster out of engagement with the iioor when the machine rests upon the latter. At

the front side of the base a transversely-extending rock-shaft q2 is provided mounted in suitable bearings in said base and provided at its ends with rigid arms (13 g4, carrying at their ends casteuwheels g5. One of said rock-bar arms is extended to form a hand -lever q, upon which is mounted a spring-pressed latch q?, adapted to engage a notched segment g8, suitably mounted upon the base adjacent thereto.

The operation of the machine constructed as described is as follows: A suitable supply of nails having been placed in the upper hopper and some of them fed downwardly,so that each ofthe slots contains one or more nails held back by the feed-plates, the operator places his foot upon the foot-leverf and depresses it, which retracts the feed-plates and permits the nail held by each plate to drop down against the heel of the plate next in front of it. Upon the return movement the points of the plates separate otf the first or advance nail of each slot and deliver them into the several guidechutes, through which they pass into position in the several gripping-jaws in readiness to be driven. The operator now places an end piece in vertical position in each side pair of U-shaped clips and a partition-piece (which is exactly like the end pieces) in the intermediate pair of clips M and then places the several strips which are to form the side of the box then uppermost upon the upper edges of the end and intermediate pieces, adjusting them to position by means of the stop N, and then depresses the foot-lever c3, so as to raise the table B into engagement with the lower ends of the vertical box members and carry or push the latter through the clips, together with the side pieces resting upon said vertical pieces, upwardly into clamped engagement with the overhanging presser-bars C114. The operator having thus assembled the pieces upon the table and clamped them together next depresses the footlever f thereby bringing down the hammer-frame and hammer-rods carried thereby and driving the several nails held in the gripping-jaws simultaneously into the side of the box. Upon permitting the hammer-frame to return to its normal uppermost position a new set of nails is fedforward into position to be driven upon the next reciprocation of the hammer-rods. The'operator next releases the box by loweri ing the supporting-table, rotates it forward one step, so as to bring that side which in the finished box will become the bottom thereof uppermost,and again places the required side strips in position upon the then upper edges of the end and partition pieces. Obviously the nailing of this side and the succeeding one are exact repetitions of the first-described operation, and it is to be noted in this connection that the constantly-changing size of the box as it receives its several sides does not in any way affect or interfere with the clamping and nailing operations. Ordinarily the cover or top side of the box is not nailed on by the machine; but it obviously may be, if for any reason this is found desirable. After the machine has been once started the vibration due to its operation serves to feed down the nails from the upper to the lower IIO 'as hereinbefore described.

hopper and down over the bottom of the latter, during which latter movement the greater part of them are distributed into the slots, Such as drop through the openings at the lower edge of the hopper-bottom are from time to time returned to the upper hoppers.

Obviously the machine might be connected With any suitable source of power, so as to be operated thereby and simply fed and controlled by the operator.

Fromthe foregoing it will be seen that We have produced a machine which is exceedingly simple in all its parts, which may be readily and rapidly operated by a single operator, a machine in which the feed mechanism is positive and certain and not liable to be affected by variations eitherin the size of the nails or in the exact form of the latter Within reasonable limits, and a machine in which the nailing operation is performed directly under the eye of the Workman, so that should the supply of nails become exhausted or for any other reason a complete set of nails should fail to feed down upon each reciprocation of the hammers the operator Will instantly detect such failure and before successive defective nailing operations. At the same time the several advantages are obtained Without the use of complicated mechanism or numerous parts.

While We have herein shown and described what We deem to be a preferred embodimentof our invention, yet it will be obvious the details thereof may be modified to some extent Without departing from the invention, and We do not therefore Wish to be limited to the details shown except as made the subject of specific claims.

Ve claim as our invention- 1. In a box-nailing machine, the'combination With the main frame, of a box-supporting table movably mounted upon said frame,

v an opposing support arranged to overhang the supporting-table, mechanism for lifting the table to carry the box members thereon into engagement with the overhanging support and a plurality of clips mounted upon the frame, adapted to support the vertical members of the box yieldingly so as to permit them to be lifted by the supporting-table.

2. In a box-nailing machine, the combination With the main frame, of a box-supporting table'movably mounted upon said frame, an opposing support arranged to overhang the supporting-table, mechanism for lifting the table to carry the box members thereon into engagement-With the overhanging support and a plurality of U-shaped spring-clips mounted upon the frame, adapted to support the vertical members of the box yieldingly, so as to permit them to be liftedvby the supporting-table. l

3. In a box-nailing machine, the combination with the main frame, of a box-supporting table movably mounted upon said frame, an opposing support arranged to overhang the supporting-table, mechanism for lifting the table to carry the box members thereon into engagement With the overhanging support and a plurality of pairs of U-shaped springclips mounted upon the rear of the main frame in vertical alinement With each other and arranged to project forwardly 'therefrom in position to receive the vertical members of the box, as and for the purpose set forth.

4c. In a box-nailing machine, the combination with the main frame, of a box-supporting table movably mounted upon said frame, an opposing support arranged to overhang the supporting-table, and mechanism for lifting the table to carry the box members thereoninto engagement with the overhangingsupport comprising a rock-shaft extending beneath and parallel with the table, a pair of vcams located at a distance apart upon said rock-shaft, adapted to engage and lift the table when the rock-shaft is oscillated, a crankarm upon said rock-shaft and a pedal mechanism operatively connected with said crankarm.

tion with the main frame, of a box-supporting table movably mounted upon said frame, an opposing support arrangedto overhang the supporting-table, and mechanism for lifting the table to carry the box members thereon into engagement With the overhangingsupport, comprising a rock-shaft extending beneath and parallel With the table, a pair of cams located at a distance apart upon said rock-shaft, adapted to engage and lift'the table When the rock-shaft is oscillated, a crankarm upon said rock-shaft, a pedal mechanism operatively connected With said crank- 5. In a box-nailing machine, the combinaroo arm and a ratchet mechanism adapted to engage the pedal mechanism to hold the table elevated in any desired position.

6. A nail-distributing device comprising an inclined feed-board provided With a plurality of slots adapted to hold nails suspended by their heads, a series of projections having inclined sides arranged between said slots and adapted to direct the nails into the slot, openings in alinement with and in advance of said projections, through which such nails as fail to enter the slot will be discharged, and a hopper mountedabove said feed-board and having its bottom ipclined at an adjustable angle oppositely disposed With relation to the angle of inclination of the feed-board and arranged to discharge upon said feed-board, g

substantially as described. l

'7. In a box-nailing machine, the combination with the main frame, a vertically-reciprocatory hammer-frame mounted thereon, and mechanism for reciprocating said hammer-frame, of a nail-separating mechanism adapted to feed forward a set of nails upon each reciprocation of the hammer-frame and means for operating said nail-separating mechanism comprising a reeiprocatory bar upon which the nail-separating devices are mounted a bent lever pivoted atits angle upon the main frame and having one of its arms operatively engaged by means of a slotand pin connection with the reciprocatory ba r and having its opposite arm connected with the hammer-frame by a slot-andpin connection, whereby the vertically-reciprocatory movement of the hammenframe imparts a horizontally-reciprocatory movement to the bar of the separating mechanism.

S. A nail-distributing device comprising an inclined feed-board provided with-a plurality of slots adapted to hold nails suspended by their heads, a series of projections having inclined sides arranged between said slots and adapted to direct the nails into the slots, openings in alineinent with and in advance of said projections and upstanding fingers or projections adjacent to said openings and adapted to arrest such nails as fail to enter the slots and direct them through the openings.

9. The combination with a portable machine-frame adapted to rest upon a working lioor, of a rock shaft arranged to extend transversely of said frame parallel with and adjacent to the su pportin g-contacts which rest upon the floor, a pair of crank-arms mounted upon said rock-shaft provided at their ends with casters,a notched disk orscgment mounted rigidlyupon the frame, a ratchet-lever a1'- ranged to cooperate with said notched segment to lock the roclcshaft in determined position and a third caster mounted at the side of the machine opposite that at which the rock-shaft is located in bearings holding it elevated free from the iioor when the machine rests directly upon its base, said latter caster being adapted to be brought into bearing With the floor when the opposite side of the machine is tilted upwardly by elevating it through the medium of the rock-arm casters. 4o

In testimony that We claiin the' foregoing as our invention We affix our signatures, in presence of two subscribing Witnesses, this 7th day of July, A. D. 1899.

ALBERT H. SCHANCK. LEE R. IIIGKMAN.

lVitnesses:

C. F. MARCY, A. MAR'NN. 

